Merrill Lynch Report

Merrill Lynch research report this morning raised target price for ISRG from $600 to $650, 2019 EPS from $12.19 to $12.82, 2020 from $13.87 to $14.26 and 2021 at $16.33. Also believes competition in U.S. is further away than originally envisioned. Regulatory requirements for robotic approvals are clearly increasing and now think it will be three years before ISRG has a competitor with a full suite of indications approved in the US.